Babylon

STORIES

Making Magic Tea

June 27th, 2016

Although claimed by many, the origin of Kombucha remains a mystery. Most sources attribute this “magic tea” to the Chinese, dating back over 5000 years. We have to admit that a jar of fermenting Kombucha looks like a science experiment: however, the end-product is a deliciously refreshing drink with many alleged health benefits.

Continue reading

ROCKIN’ THE CAPE

May 25th, 2016

We've always been strong on botany, weak on stones. Now we're adding the palaeontological landscape of four regions of the Cape. Our team is reworking blocks in the indigenous fragrance garden with soil, rocks, and numerous plant species. We're creating small-scale versions of the Hantam, Robertson Karoo, Simonsberg and Eastern Cape.

Continue reading

How to Preserve Olives

April 28th, 2016

On the farm we use most of our olives to make extra virgin olive oil – a medium style, but complex blend of five cultivars: Frantoio, Mission, Don Carlou, Leccino and Corratina. We also preserve the whole fruits in brine or salt for the two restaurants, black calamata and green Nonchellara.

Continue reading

12 Ways to use Quinces

April 19th, 2016

It’s believed that station commander Jan van Riebeeck planted the first quince trees in Africa from pips that he brought from Holland. Quince trees are often used as rootstock for other fruit trees. In our garden, we’ve grafted old-fashioned medlar trees onto some quince rootstock.

Continue reading

Psyched for Cycads

February 8th, 2016

If you’ve been to the farm recently and meandered across the wooden bridge that leads to the koppie, you would have noticed that the riverbanks have been cleared to showcase our new cycad collection. We're proud to host almost all of the 41 South African indigenous cycad species.

Continue reading